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G. L. SUTTON & H. J..DEVOE.

WRENCH. No. 434,409. Patented Aug. 12, 1890.

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WITNESSES 1.7V VEJV T 0R5 U ITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE L. SUTTON AND HARVEY J. DE VOE, OF CRESTON, IOWA, ASSIGNORS OF ONE-THIRD TO JOHN M. WOODWARD, OF SAME PLACE.

WRENCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 434,409, dated August 12, 1890.

Application filed March 18, 1890- Serial No. 344,329- (lIo model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE L. SUTTON and HARVEY J. DE VOE, citizens of the United States, residing at Creston, in the county of 7 Union and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wrenches; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to wrenches; and it consists in the novel construction and combination of the parts hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of the wrench, showing the jaws closed, the position of the jaws when the parts are moved apart being indicated by the dotted lines. Fig. 2 is afront view, and Fig. 3isarear view, of the wrench.

A is the handle of the wrench, and a is a rectangular bar, which is adapted to be slid back and forth in the wrench-handle. A screw a is provided at the lower end of bar a, and b is a thumb-nut which engages with the said screw. A circular groove 12 is formed in nut 12, and B is a plate secured to the handle and engaging with the groove b, so that the bar a may be slid back and forth in the handle by turning the thumb-nut.

O is a head at the top of bara, which forms the stationary half of the wrench-jaws.

D is a sleeve which slides upon the bar a, and is provided with the projections d,formingthe otherhalves of the wrench-jaws. One of the projections cl is provided with the serrated plate d, working opposite the deep notch c in the head C, and forms a jaw adapted to engage with pipes. The opposite half-jaws are plain and are adapted to engage with nuts.

It is obvious that the wrench may be constructed with only a single jaw for pipes or for nuts, or with both, as shown in the drawings.

E is a lever provided with the bifurcated end e, and e are pins by which the said end 6 is pivoted to the handle A.

F are curved slots formed in the end e, cocentric to the pivot-pins e, and f are pins which project from the sleeve D and engage with the said slots. The sleeve is slid upon the bar a to cause the jaws to grip the pipe or nut when the lever E is pressed toward the handle, and the sleeve moves in the opposite direction to release the pipe or nut when the said lever is moved away from the handle.

In order to relieve the pins J from undue strain when a nut or pipe is gripped by the jaws, curved projections g are provided upon the inside of the bifurcated end e, and these projections bear against the lower end of the sleeve D, close to the bar a. The pins f are arranged between the jaws of the wrench and the pivot-pins e on a line parallel to the longitudinal axis of the wrench and passing through the center of the said pivot-pins, and the projections g bear against the end of the sleeve D between the jaws and the said piv- 7o ot-pins e close to the said line, so that when the lever E has been pressed toward the handle, causing the jaws to grip the nut, the action of turning the nut does nottend to force theleverE outwardly with any materialpressure against the grip of the hand, which would be the case if the said pins f and projections g were not substantially upon a line drawn parallel with the axis of the wrench.

G is a spring secured to the wrench-handle and adapted to press the lever E outwardly to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1. This causes the jaws to be automatically moved apart every time the grip of the hand upon the handle and lever is released, '85 in order to move back the wrench to re-engage the jaws with the pipe or nut.

The wrench is adapted to different sizes of pipes or nuts by turning the thumb-nut.

lVhat we claim is- 1. In a wrench, the combination, with a handle, of a bar projecting from the handle and provided with a jaw, a sleeve sliding on the said bar and provided with the other jaw, the pivoted lever provided with a bifurcated 95 end having slots F and projections g, and the pins projecting from the sleeve and engaging with the said slots, the said projections and pins being substantially upon a line drawn through the lever-pivots parallel with the axis I00 of the wrench, as described.

2. In a wrench, the combination, with a handle, of an adjustable bar sliding in the handle and provided with a jaw, a sleeve sliding on the said bar and provided with the other jaw, the lever pivoted to the handle and provided with a bifurcated end having, slots F and projections g, the pins projecting from the sleeve and engaging with slots F, the said projections and pins hein g substantially upon a line drawn through the lever-pivots parallel to with the axis of the Wrench, and a spring arranged between the handle and thelower end of the said lever for automatically retracting" the said sleeve, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof We affix oursignatn res in presence of two witnesses.

G. L. SUTTON. HARVEY J. DE VOE. lVitnesses:

J. H. COPENHEFFER, PERRY Boees. 

